Dogs seized from breeder

Wednesday

Jul 24, 2013 at 2:59 PM

More than a hundred dogs were seized from a Thibodaux breeder Wednesday, two months after a judge found him guilty of animal cruelty.

Jean-Paul ArguelloStaff Writer

More than a hundred dogs were seized from a Thibodaux breeder Wednesday, two months after a judge found him guilty of animal cruelty.Warren “Chris” Michot was found guilty of cruelty to animals in May. In June, the court ordered Michot to substantially reduce the number of dogs on his property. Michot bred Brittany spaniels at his home at 368 Little Choupic Road and owned 113 dogs that were kept outside in a cramped enclosure. Neighbors have complained to police about the noise and smell numerous times, including 19 times since the May ruling.After failing to reduce the number of dogs, Judge F. Hugh “Buddy” Larose ordered that all but 10 dogs be removed.The Lafourche Parish Animal Shelter did not have the resources to house, transport or treat the dogs.Lafourche parish officials coordinated with the National Brittany Rescue and Adoption Network in case Larose ordered the dogs seized. Brittany Rescue then contacted four more Brittany spaniel rescue groups across the country to form the Brittany Rescue Consortium to help in the mass rescue that involved more than 40 people.“There is a number of people that have done a lot of hard work in here ... and we're all on Cloud Nine to have this opportunity to help facilitate (the dogs) in being removed. They deserved it,” said Bill Canney, a rescuer for Magnolia Brittany Rescue. The dogs were taken to the Raceland Agriculture Center where they were bathed, vaccinated and given a preliminary medical evaluation by Dr. Lionel de la Houssaye, Lafourche Parish veterinarian. When contacted, Houssaye said he had examined 50 dogs. More than 30 of them of them tested positive for heartworms. The dogs presented a number of other ailments including skin problems, bad teeth and missing teeth but were otherwise in “decent” condition, he said.Lafourche Parish spokeswoman Loralei A. Gilliam said she expects more than half of the dogs to test positive for heartworms.On Friday, an LSU veterinarian team will assist in performing more thorough medical evaluations. By Saturday morning, the pack will be split five ways and each rescue organization will take them to their respective states where they will be placed in foster homes and offered up for adoption to be determined through an application process through Brittany Rescue.Asked what would happen to the dogs that tested positive for heartworms, Gilliam said, “(Brittany Rescue's) goal is to save all of the dogs.” She said all will be treated until they are back to full health.Michot's next door neighbor, Leonard Clark, who has lived next to Michot for more than three years, said the noise was unbearable at first. He said he could even hear the din over his riding lawnmower. The smell of fecal matter was overpowering and noticeable even after the dogs were gone. Moreover, the fecal matter would attract clouds of flies. The dogs would regularly escape and rummage through his trash. Clark confronted Michot about the problems. “He said, well, the dog broke out because it was hungry. And I wanted to make a comment to him, ‘Dude, if they're breaking out because they're hungry, think about what they would do to somebody's kid if they're hungry? '” Clark said.Clark said that he did not say that to Michot because he did not want to risk souring his relationship with his neighbor.Dani Morgan, founder of the Thibodaux animal rescue group We Stand Bayou, said it was her group, along with the Louisiana Humane Society–Lafourche Chapter, who were responsible for bringing this issue to parish officials' attention. Morgan's group has been fighting for the spaniels' safety since August of last year, she said, adding she was the first person to bring the situation to Brittany Rescue's attention.“We had trucks, kennels, dawn — we had everything,” Morgan said.Despite this, when Morgan showed up at the Agriculture Center, Parish Administrator Archie Chaisson told her he could not get her, her group and the Louisiana Humane Society clearance to take part in the rescue through the Sheriff's Office due to liability insurance issues because they are not employees of the parish.“We were just trying to help. We did not expect this type of behavior. I told him that they're (the rescue groups) not employees of Lafourche Parish government. He didn't have an answer. My rescue partner asked if we could just sit in the parking lot in our cars and he said ‘no,' that we had to leave.”Chaisson said that the groups were excluded from the rescue because of “safety and practicality reasons” but Lafourche Parish appreciated the work they had done to make this rescue happen.